Protector
by astorytoremember
Summary: When Ivan plans to use Mirajane to destroy Fairy Tail from the inside out, can Laxus protect her before it's too late? MiraLaxus, bits of Nalu, Gruvia, and Gale to come. Set after GMG.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! So, this is my first Fairy Tail story. Any feedback is great! Updates will come whenever I can escape from the prison that is school! Finals are coming up soon, so it may be a bit before I get the chance.**

 **Anyway, hope you like!**

 **I do not own Fairy Tail. All of it belongs to the great Hiro Mashima.**

Chapter 1

 _I love being one of the first people here in the mornings. It's so soothing,_ I thought.

Being a long time member and trusted by Master Makarov has its perks- I had a key to the guild hall. I could come and go as I pleased. I usually come in early to get ready for the day, mostly in the kitchen- deliveries arrived every day at 6:00 am sharp. I savor the peace and quiet while it lasts. The few people that are here as early as I am generally keep to themselves.

As I move the last of the deliveries to the kitchen, I sigh happily. I love working in the guild, being around my friends all the time. I begin to hum as I unload the packages.

When I get to the alcohol kegs, I sigh again, this time in frustration. I love Cana to death, but does she really need all these _heavy_ kegs?

I pick one up, moving to the door. The keg blocks my view of anything in front of me, so I don't see the person enter the kitchen just as I leave.

I was almost through the door when I hit something solid. A quiet "Ow," comes from the other side of the keg, and I gasp.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!" I say, struggling to move the barrel to the side. When I see who it is, I gasp again.

"Oh, Laxus, I'm so sorry!"

"It's alright, Mira. I'm okay." He steps back so I can pass him. "Do you need any help carrying those?"

"Sure! They're by the back door. If you could bring them out to the bar, that'd be great!" I smile at him as I move into the hallway.

As I put the first keg under the bar, Laxus appears with two more, one under each arm.

"Where do you want these?" he asks.

"You can put those two under the bar. All the others will get stacked along the wall over there." I point to the wall behind me.

"Mira, can we get some drinks over here?" a voice calls from somewhere in the guild hall.

"Just a minute!" she yells back. She looks back at Laxus, torn.

"Go. I got this." Laxus says, heading back to the kitchen.

"Are you sure?" I ask, holding a hand out as if to stop him.

"Yes, Mira." And he's gone.

I stare at where he's disappeared, confused. My name is called from behind me, so I tear my eyes away and go to work.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Throughout the day, I feel eyes on me. I know people watch me, because I'm all over the place, but this felt like full-on _staring_. A few times, I saw Laxus looking at me from his table on the corner of the guild hall. Was it him who'd been staring at me all day?

I weave through the tables, a tray in each hand. Suddenly, a noise echoes through the guild hall. A howling, deep and dark, filled the building. Everyone froze.

Master Makarov appeared at the top of the stairs, worry tightening his features.

I drop my trays on the nearest table, and move towards the guild master. "Master, what's going on?" I ask in a tight voice.

"I fear a fight is on our horizon." He said solemnly, eyes sweeping over his children in the guild.

"Do we have any idea when they'll attack? Or who?"

"No," he sighs. "If I had any idea of who it is, I might be able to tell. But with only that, I can only say it's a dark guild."

A loud shuffling noise rose up. Every head turns as Cana throws her cards onto the table. Understanding blooms through everyone- if Cana could see something, we could be prepared.

Cana flips over several cards, staring into space, muttering the entire time, until she reaches one card. She flinches, and drops the card.

"Cana?" I say, worried. I move to her seat, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Cana, what did you see?"

"We won't win," she says flatly, taking a huge gulp from her glass.

"What do you mean?" I grab both her shoulders, spinning her to face me.

"I saw darkness. Everywhere. It consumed everything in its path. I don't know where it comes from, but it is pure evil. Even if we put our best up against it, we would fail."

"Master, -" I start, but Cana pushes on.

"That's not the worst part. For whatever reason, I saw you, Mira. You could control the darkness. But you were _different_."

"Different how?" A gruff voice asks. Gajeel had peeled himself away from the shadows, and into the throng of people. A look of recognition and anger was set on his face.

"Her eyes were completely black. Even in her transformations, her eyes were black." Cana explains, struggling to understand.

"Shit, it's worse than I thought." Gajeel scrubs a hand over his face.

"What, my boy?" Makarov stared pensively at the Iron Dragon Slayer.

"It's Ivan." He growls. "The dark guilds are teaming up, trying to topple the official guilds. Fairy Tail is at the top of the 'most threatening' list. Apparently, he's trying to use the she-devil to take us down from the inside. Everybody trusts her. It would be the perfect way to kill everyone."

All the blood drains from my face. "How would they get me to do that?"I ask, voice wavering at the thought of killing my fellow guildmates.

Fury fills my mind.

"Supposedly, he'll capture you, and take you to the top of a mountain under the new moon, and bind a really powerful dark lacrima to your body. He'll be able to control you through the lacrima. Once it's on, you'll have no chance of escaping it until the next new moon."

"That's similar to what he did to me when I was a kid." I jump, and look over my shoulder. Laxus was directly behind me. He probably heard us talking about his father.

"But he can't control you through it." I choke out. Anger and fear war inside me.

"Hey." I don't respond, too wrapped up in my thoughts.

"Hey, Mira." Laxus speaks louder, directing his voice at me. I look up, feeling my emotions playing across my face. Tears pool in my eyes, but they don't fall.

"We are _not_ going to let him get you. He will have to kill each and every one of us before he can have you, which defeats his plan. We just have to be more careful."

The guild hall is completely silent.

Makarov clears his throat. "Cana, my dear, did you see anything else?"

She hesitates. "After that, it's mostly a blur. Everyone was fighting- Laxus, Erza, Natsu. Raven Tail was front and center. Then, everything goes black for a minute, and it's clear again. Our entire guild is dead on the ground, with Raven Tail standing above us. The next thing scared me the most."

"What?" Master Makarov asks, anger clear on his face.

"Laxus, Gajeel, and Mirajane were _with_ Raven Tail. And all of the dead had the Raven Tail guild symbol burned onto their bodies."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

After the bomb had been dropped, everyone stays at the guild hall to protect each other, but mostly me.

"What are we going to do, Master?" I was frantically cleaning the bar and everything in it. "Should we wait for Erza, Natsu, Gray, and Lucy? They won't be back until tomorrow."

"Yes, but we should keep our guard up, in case they attack before they are back." The master sat in his usual spot on the bar counter, his thoughts running miles in his head.

"What about Mystogan? Should we call him?" I scrub a glass furiously, though it's already clean.

Makarov grunts, but stays deep in thought.

"Should we-?" I begin to say, but I don't get to ask.

"Mirajane, I know you're scared, but if I am to make a plan, I need you to stop fretting. I'm aware of our situation. Word has been sent to both Erza and Jellal. They will be her as quickly as possible. Try to relax, my dear." He looks at me, sympathy in his gaze.

'I'm sorry, Master." My shoulders slump. I turn to go into the kitchen, but I stop.

The dozen kegs Laxus moved for me stand stacked against the back wall of the bar. I had only given Cana the ones under the counter, none of these yet.

The thought of Laxus' kind act pulls back the memory of earlier.

'"We are _not_ going to let him get you."' The fierce look on his face as he said that gives me shivers all over. Was he saying that he would fight his own father to save her?

My breath caught in my throat. _Laxus._

For years, I'd had a crush on him. But then he came back evil, corrupted by his father, nearly destroying Fairy Tail in his quest to become the guild master. During his exile, I'd questioned my feelings for him. I told myself to ignore them, but ever since he came back, I'd had a hard time doing so.

I look over to where he sits in the corner. His gaze is locked onto me, never wavering. When our eyes meet, his widen a little, but he doesn't look away. He nods solemnly at me.

I smile, and mouth the words _Thank you_ at him.

One side of his mouth curls up, and he raises his glass to drink, only to find it empty. Looking back at her, he lifts his cup to her, gesturing for a refill.

I roll my eyes, sighing. But the smile stays.

I grab a tray, and lose myself to my work.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"See you tomorrow!" I wave as the last few people leave the guild hall. I turn back to the bar, putting away clean dishes. I pick up a tray of dirty dishes, carrying it to the kitchen.

I set to washing them- they are the last thing I d before I leave every night.

As I am drying a dish, I hear a soft step, an intake of breath, from the far end of the room.

"Can I help you?" I ask, not turning to face the person.

"I was thinking more along the lines of me helping _you_." A deep voice echoes through the room.

I glance over my shoulder. Laxus stands there, leaning against the doorframe.

I smile. "No, it's okay. I'm almost done. But thank you for asking." I collect all the clean dishes onto the tray, and take them back out to the bar, brushing past Laxus on the way.

A tingle ran through my body when we touch. A blush tinges my cheeks, and I keep my face turned so he doesn't see it.

As I put the dishes away, I feel eyes on me again. I look up; there is no one in the café in front of me, so the person is behind me.

As I continue my work, I peek through my hair as I put a cup on the shelf. Laxus was there, watching me intently.

 _Why is he watching me?_ I wonder.

I turn back to the bar. "It's rude to stare, you know."

It threw him off guard for a second. "I don't think you should be alone with the threat of Ivan hanging over you."

I face him, a small smile on my lips. "Thank you for your concern, but I can hold my own in a fight."

I move to slip past him, but he blocks the doorway with his body. He leans down, until he is almost face to face with me.

"I know you're powerful, Mira, but you have no idea what he'll use to get you. Dark magics that terrify even Gramps. And I do not want to see you put through that torture." His eyes bore into mine, a hint of fear in his gaze.

"Laxus, what am I going to do?" I know he isn't trying to scare me, but it affects me all the same.

Ever since my powers came back, I've been less afraid than ever. But now, the fate of the guild rests with my safety, with my being protected.

I know we have the upper hand with Cana's prediction, but I still have to be careful.

"I talked to Gramps. He came to me, asking if I would protect you. I know all of Ivan's tricks. I'm the best one to protect you, he said. I said yes."

"Really?" Our eyes meet. He nods. "Thank you, Laxus."

"Now, I know you stay at Fairy Hills, but my place would be a better idea. They would never think you'd be there. I know Titania's strong, but she won't know what's coming." He began to exit the guild hall, but noticed I wasn't following him.

He looks back. "Mira?"

"Laxus, how can I trust you?" I ask warily. "In Cana's vision, you're with Raven Tail. How do I know that I can trust you?"

Laxus sighs. I guess he knew it would come up sooner or later. He sat at one of the tables, gesturing for me to sit across from him.

"After Gramps expelled me from the guild, I wandered. All over the continent. I met a lot of good people, even more bad ones. After the first few days, I was a changed man. It was as if I'd scrubbed my soul of all of its taint. All the hate disappeared, except for one person. Ivan."

"Even if he's your father?" I ask quietly.

"That man may be the man who made me, but he is not the man a father is supposed to be." Laxus let out. His words were full of bitterness and anger. I try to send all of my sympathy across the table to him.

"I was in a town called Farden when I met this kid. He was about Wendy's age. I found him cowering in an alley behind a trash pile. He was black and blue, and bleeding all over. When he saw me, he curled up in on himself, as if he thought I was going to hurt him." He rubs his eyes with the heels of his palms.

"I calmed him down, got him to talk. Apparently, his father was a member of a dark guild, and his mother had died recently. The dad blamed him for it, and nearly beat him to death.

I gasp, and my hand flies to cover my mouth. Tears pool in my eyes.

"I saw myself in his eyes. The fear. I was always afraid of my father, no matter what I said."

"Oh, Laxus," I whisper. I drop my hand from my mouth to my chest, over my heart.

"I patched him up, and had him take me to his home. His father had just gotten back from his guild. I stayed out of sight, waiting for him. The kid sat in the middle of the room. He saw him as soon as he walked into the house. He screamed at the kid, and raised his hand to hit him. When I saw him like that, with the kid flinching away, I snapped."

"What happened?" My hand found his on the tabletop. His fingers were rough, but comfortable. Capable.

"He won't ever cause trouble again." Laxus said briefly. "I dropped the kid at a relative's house a few towns over. Right before I left, he ran up to me, and gave me the biggest hug. He thanked me, saying he hoped to be like me when he grew up." He laughs, his eyes wet. "I said, 'No, kid, you don't wanna be like me. You know who you should be?' He shook his head, eyes wide. I leaned down, putting my hand on his head, and said, 'You. Nobody else, just yourself.' The smile on that kid's face was so big. I felt better than I ever did with Ivan. Right then, I knew."

"Knew what, Laxus?" He lifts his head, and his eyes meet mine. As I watch, his expression brightens, and a small smile forms on his face.

As he holds my gaze, he whispers, "That I am Fairy Tail, through and through."

A huge smile splits my face, making Laxus' expression to brighten even further.

"Well, I guess you can say that Fairy Tail stays with you, no matter what you go through." I laugh.

"No matter what," Laxus agrees.

My smile fades, and I sigh. "I'm sorry I questioned you, Laxus. I should've known that wouldn't have come back if you hadn't changed."

Laxus shook his head, waving away her concern. "It's fine, Mira. I would've done the same. When I did the things I did, I broke a lot of peoples' trust. I wouldn't expect anything else." He rises, holding a hand out to me. "Let's go. You're bound to be tired after the day you've had."

I grin, taking his hand. "Oh, that? That was nothing. You should see me when everyone's here."

"Yeah, I'd bet. Where's the rest of them, anyway?" He steers me towards the door, keeping an arm around my back, a keen eye on our surroundings.

"Erza, Gray, Natsu, Lucy and Happy went on an S-Class mission in Crocus. Apparently, there was an infestation of some exotic monster that Erza had come across before, so she felt obligated to get rid of them. They won't be back until tomorrow. I'm savoring the quiet while it lasts." We both laugh, knowing Natsu would start a fight the minute he got back.

We walk through the city, taking out time.

I don't mind. I feel safe with him next to me. His arm around my back holds me close, and I instinctively gravitate towards his warmth, as I try to escape the night's chill. I shiver and hear a rustling sound. A second later, something warm and heavy is draped across my shoulders. I look up, startled.

Laxus has shrugged off his furry coat, wrapping me in its warmth. His arm follows the coat, bringing her to his side. I smile, and allow myself to be pulled along.

We walk in comfortable silence, passing the closed storefronts, which seem eerie in the darkness.

Before I know it, we reach the edge of town, where the buildings become more and more sparse. He leads me further away from town, into a forested area around a small, worn path.

When the moonlight breaks through the canopy, I gasp, as it reveals the natural beauty of the forest.

A chuckle comes from Laxus, as he pulls me deeper into the forest. We pass a stand of weeping willows, and come upon a small house.

"You live out here?" I ask, trying to take it all in.

"Yeah. Where'd you think I lived?" He opens the front door, ushering her in.

"I'm not sure. Maybe with Master Makarov, or at the guild hall, or something like that." I giggle, as I walk into his house.

"The guild hall? Really?" Laxus laughs, closing the door behind him.

"How was I supposed to know?" I smile as I take off his coat, and hang it on a hook by the door. "It's not like I was going to follow you home to find out."

"Alright," he says, getting down to business. "The bathroom is right here." He opens a door to my left, and I can see the tub from where I stand.

"The kitchen is through that archway," He points across the room.

"You can have my bed. I'll sleep on the couch." He crosses the room, opening another door, which leads into a large bedroom. An enormous bed takes up much of the room- big enough for four people, let alone one.

I turn to see him rummaging through his closet. He turns, closing it with his foot, a bundle of clothes in his hand. He holds them out to me.

"Here, these are close to your size. They're too small for me." He says, and I take them.

I stand there, shocked. "Laxus, you don't have to sleep on the couch. The bed has enough room for the both of us. I don't mind." I walk to the door, towards the bathroom. "Besides, wouldn't it be better to protect me if you were closer?" I smile, and close the door behind me, so he has privacy.

After closing the bathroom door, I look at the clothes in my hand. A t-shirt that looks to be five times too big for me, and a pair of drawstring shorts. I sigh, grateful that I have clothes to change into. I slip my dress off, and quickly put the clothes on.

The shorts stay put, as I tie the string tightly around my waist. They are extremely long, falling past my knees. The shirt hangs off my body, the collar sliding down my shoulder, exposing my skin. I fold my dress, and set it with my belongings when I exit the bathroom.

Yawning wide, I go back to the bedroom. I move to the side of the bed, crawling under the covers and snuggling down in a pile of pillows. I sigh, sinking into waves of drowsiness.

I feel Laxus get into the bed. I manage to murmur, "Thank you, Laxus."

Just before I descend into the blackness, I swear I hear him say, "Anything for you, Mira."


End file.
